BRIDGEPORT — For more than three quarters Wednesday night, the Cheshire High boys basketball team seemed primed for a second straight road victory.

But 10th-seeded Bridgeport Central put an end to the upset bid with a 27-point fourth-quarter surge, topping the Rams, 76-63, in the second round of the Class LL state tournament.

Marcus Blackwell scored 12 of his game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter and ShaQuan Bretoux added nine of his 21 points in the final period for the Hilltoppers (21-4), who captured the FCIAC championship last week.

"We knew that we could stay in the game, and we knew we could win, but we didn't have the best fourth quarter," said Cheshire point guard Collin Jordan. "We knew that we could come back in the second half after being down on Monday (a 59-58 win at No. 7 Simsbury). This time, we didn't come out on the right side."

But the Rams (11-12) made it interesting, thanks to senior Eric Dietrich, who converted six 3-point field goals for a team-high 23 points.

Dietrich's 3-pointer on the opening possession of the fourth quarter, off a great feed from Jordan, tied the game at 49-49.

"We didn't do a good job of defending him (Dietrich) even though we were very aware of him," said Bridgeport Central coach Barry McLeod. "Cheshire did a good job with screens and popping the ball out to him."

Dietrich connected on three 3-pointers in the third quarter, and Jordan's driving layup with one second on the clock cut the Hilltoppers' lead to three, 49-46.

"That was amazing," said Dietrich of his solid perimeter game. "That pumped me up. I like it when I am put under pressure."

After the game was tied at 49-49 in the fourth quarter, McLeod changed his defensive alignment so that Bretoux guarded Jordan. That prevented the Rams from getting back into a rhythm and getting good looks at the basket.

"I thought that was the key to the game," said McLeod.

Offensively, the Hilltoppers were able to break the Rams' press, resulting in several easy transition layups.

Leading 58-53, the Hilltoppers went on a 6-0 run to take a 64-53 lead with 3:10 left.

"We did a good job of finding the open man," said McLeod, who admired Cheshire's effort. "They're a scrappy team."

Besides Dietrich's 23 points, Jordan had 11 points and sophomore Andrew Yamin added 10 for the Rams, who played a top-flight regular-season schedule against perennial state powers Hillhouse, Wilbur Cross and Career, all of New Haven, and Wilby. That experience helped in the state tournament.

"We were not really fazed by anything," said Cheshire senior co-captain Tim Covel. "We all played with confidence. We had a great game and a great season. I couldn't have asked for anything more. It's been a huge honor to have been a captain of this team."

Covel, Eric Dietrich, his twin brother, Kevin Dietrich, and Erik Pettit are the only seniors on the Rams' roster.

"The four seniors waited their turn," said Lee.

"They stepped up when they needed to. They're quality people. The only way you can have success is if you play as team and they did. The kids worked hard and overachieved in every area."

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